The latest standard position announcement extends a longstanding relationship between the two companies.

“Blue Bird and Prestolite have worked together for many years to develop alternators engineered to meet and exceed the school bus industry’s uniquely challenging charging system requirements,” said Nick Laenen, vice president of sales and marketing for Prestolite. “We are very pleased that Blue Bird has decided to extend this partnership and will continue to rely on Prestolite to deliver superior performance and reliability to its customers.”

Previously, Blue Bird became the first OEM to adopt the IdlePro 12V 240-amp alternator as the standard option for its range of school buses. The company will continue to offer that model — along with IdlePro Extreme 12V 280- and 350-amp alternators — as upgrade options for customers in need of additional amperage.

Blue Bird customers can also choose to install Leece-Neville 4000 series alternators in 270- and 320-amp versions.